Waterworks director says parish may not be responsible for high water bills
Water bills across the parish seem to be getting higher for some residents, while others say that their bills are about the same. Robert Brou, St. Charles Parish Waterworks Director, says customer complaints about higher bills are immediately examined for a number of factors. “We examine the customer’s bills, and we consider the number of days in the billing cycle,” he said. “A lot of factors play into why someone’s water bill may be higher at various times than others.”
Each billing statement shows how much water a household has used for that month, the month before and for the same month from the previous year. To prevent residents from receiving 13 bills a year, four billing cycles each year are stretched to 35 days. A regular billing cycle is 28 days.“If consumption has increased sharply or shows a gradual increase over time, this could indicate that the resident has a leak somewhere in their plumbing” Brou said. Brou said it’s the leaks residents don’t see that cause the biggest problems. Thousands of gallons of water can be lost from a leaky toilet each day, and that water goes directly into the wastewater system. Meanwhile, a leaky pipe can do damage to a home but won’t likely do damage to a water bill.
Brou said his department gives out detection kits by request for residents who need to identify leaks in toilets. The next step is for the resident to repair the leak.
Brou says if the resident shows proof that the leak has been repaired, he or she may qualify for a bill adjustment if their consumption is more than double their average.Sewer and trash pick up charges can also contribute to the high cost of a water bill.
In January 2006 sewer rates rose from $4.25 to $4.67 per thousand gallons of water use. Garbage collection rates increased this month from $17.31 to $17.79.
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